The National Women’s Soccer League‘s 11th regular season kicks off this weekend, and progress appears to be prevalent at every turn. Expansion interest and fees are booming, new media partners make the league more accessible than ever, and clubs are paying world-record transfer fees for players.
Growth is hardly ever linear, however, and in the NWSL’s case, the collective doesn’t entirely represent the individual clubs. The NWSL, like many leagues, has long had a clear division between the teams that are haves and have-nots. The balance of power has shifted over time, and the group of ambitious teams and owners is larger than ever. While the NWSL is setting new standards as a collective, who is leading that charge? We’ve set out to define how ambitious each of the 14 NWSL teams is in a semi-scientific way, looking at major categories on and off the field.
This general idea is inspired by the late Grant Wahl, who created his popular “Ambition Rankings” to measure the MLS teams leading the pack vs. those coasting. He was an early advocate of the women’s game in mainstream media, and these rankings are in no way meant to replace what he might have done similarly for the NWSL. Instead, our hope is that using this concept honors him while providing a deeper…
